


Home Before Dark

by casket_case



Category: Original Work
Genre: Being Lost, Fear, Horror, Monsters, Thriller, Urban Legends
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-12-13
Updated: 2020-12-13
Packaged: 2021-03-10 17:15:38
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,312
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/28040736
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/casket_case/pseuds/casket_case
Summary: "A figure as black and dark as the night, almost like a shadow, yet solid. Mystical glowing eyes so bright they’d easily blind whoever is unfortunate enough to meet them. Twisted horns, jagged and sharp, and long tangled hair that’s reminiscent of dry moss."Home Before Dark is my original submission to a writing competition I took part of back in November. I hope you enjoy and it, and let me know if you want to see more of my writing!
Kudos: 2





	Home Before Dark

The litter of twigs and dry leaves crunched beneath my feet, providing a quiet yet noticeable noise to the uncomfortable and eerie silence of the woods. If you’ve ever been through the woods during the evening, you know the atmosphere is often anything but quiet: The hooting of owls perched up on branches, somehow present yet always out of sight. The rustling of leaves as the cool autumn air whistles through the trees, almost like the woods itself are speaking to you through a ghostly melody. The chirping of crickets and evening bugs that provide a never ending symphony. Despite all this, I was met with nothing but the voice of my own thoughts and silence. Eerie, uncomfortable silence. 

I would have never dared to trek through these woods on any other night. My usual route around the woods had always been my first choice when it came to returning home in the evening. If I had left my duties earlier then perhaps I wouldn’t have needed to take what I assumed to be a shortcut, but I had a promise to uphold. My mother, being the ever-so-worried woman she was, had made me promise that I always be home before the sky turned dark and the sun dipped under the horizon. Always be home before dark. Simple.

I continued to walk through the woods, keeping my ears open for any hint of sound other than my own breathing. A forest wouldn’t be devoid of all life, it’s simply not how the ecology of the environment is. Of course I knew it was impossible that I was the only organism in the woods. I had heard the rumors of an animal, more so creature, that was a common myth among the late night talks shows. I would often sit up in bed and listen as the soft static would give way to the legends of a beast that roams the dreaded woods. Many would develop different theories; that the beast was a manifestation of man’s greatest fears and demons or that it was simply a mistake of nature, a stag containing a few glitches in his genetic code. Despite the different theories and beliefs, the description was always the same: 

A figure as black and dark as the night, almost like a shadow, yet solid. Mystical glowing eyes so bright they’d easily blind whoever is unfortunate enough to meet them. Twisted horns, jagged and sharp, and long tangled hair that’s reminiscent of dry moss. Of course these descriptions are from people who claimed to see the beast themselves, though they say that people often go missing in the woods not long after a beast sighting. I, for one, never believed in the idea of a beast, for it was more of a haunt said to scare children out of the woods that were filled with enough unfriendly animals and poisonous yet colorful plants that could make any mother worry. I simply believed the whole “beast” prospect was just a story. Or so I had thought.

It was not long into my walk through the woods that I began to feel uneasy. The lack of noise other than my own was already somewhat eerie and gave off an aura of dread, but I merely shrugged it off. I had a place to be before the sky turned darker and I wasn’t going to let silly childhood frights prevent me from reaching home on time. The sky was already a somewhat dark indigo, but it still held onto the last few shreds of daylight that remained. I consciously quickened my pace, figuring that it wouldn’t be terribly long before the time of my curfew struck. The feeling of uneasiness and unexplained dread sunk to the bottom of my stomach, giving me further motivation to try and make it home in shorter time. 

The light feeling of dread had now settled itself over the area like a thick blanket, heavy and suffocating. I felt as if I weren’t alone in these woods, as if something or someone was watching me from afar. I repeatedly turned my head out of paranoia, checking my surroundings for any sign of life other than myself. Nothing. The feeling continued to grow as I traveled further, until it felt as if the being that had been observing me was breathing down the back of my neck. 

It was cold, concise, leaving my small frame racked with shivers and goosebumps. I could almost feel the hand of something wavering over my shoulder, ready to grasp down and pull me away. When I turned around I expected nothing as I had seen the previous times. Nothing is not what I saw. I saw mystical glowing eyes, hair long and tangled, horns jagged and sharp, and a figure as black and dark as night. I saw the beast. 

“Wh-who are you?” I stammered in the moment, both out of breath and overtaken with shock. The myths and theories couldn’t be true, they simply couldn’t. The beast was nothing more than a tall tale, a warning to keep children out of the woods. Yet all the descriptions I had only heard from late night talks shows, all of those descriptions had somehow manifested and were standing several feet away from me. 

The beast did not respond to my query. He stood quiet and still, watching me with no indication of movement or sound. It wasn’t until I took a step back that the creature had realized now was his time to strike. The moment he made his sudden movement, I took off in a hurry.

I raced through the woods, the beat of my heart going from a soft thump to a tumultuous drum in a matter of moments. I could feel it pounding within my chest as I dashed across the forest floor. I kept my gaze forward, not bothering to look back at the wicked creature that chased me. I could hear hastened footsteps, soft yet still noticeable, crunching against the twigs and dry leaves that littered the ground. The steps became louder and louder as the beast drew near. Despite the fact that my legs were tired and close to giving out, I knew that I couldn’t give up now. 

I continued to run, determined to exit the woods with haste before the beast had the opportunity to catch up to me. It wasn’t long before I finally reached the edge of the woods, where the trees cleared out and gave way to a paved road. I stopped and looked back at the horrid creature. He had halted his chase, standing not far from me at the invisible line that separated the woods and the road I stood on. That was when the blinding light came. It was so bright and luminous. At the time I had assumed it to be the end. 

I awoke in a hospital room. I was told that at the time I was frenzied and panicked, more shocked that I was alive and breathing rather than being concerned about where I was and who was surrounding me. It was hours before I had been calmed and was able to handle the information they shared with me. The beast I had claimed to see and that had been haunting me and chasing me was written off as nothing more than rabid stag. The blinding light had been the headlights of an oncoming vehicle who happened to hit me in my supposed delirious state, or at least that’s what I was told.

Sometimes, I still see the beast outside my window. In the dead of night when all is quiet and still. He stands far from the discolored glass, quietly watching me with no movement or sound. He simply stands and stares, leaving me with nothing but the voice of my own thoughts and silence. Eerie, uncomfortable silence.

**Author's Note:**

> Kudos and comment if you want to see more of my writing!


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